Hacker News Reader

Comment by irremediable | Hacker News Reader

Very well-written. It's funny... I've never thought I might be anything other than neurotypical, but reading the article makes me realise how many of those traits I have. I've always defaulted to taking people literally, to the point that friends joke about it. As a child, I got bullied a bit for speaking in a "weird voice" (monotone), and to this day people sometimes say my voice sounds weird to them. My motor coordination is dreadful, and I've always been fascinated by categorisation and ontologies. My family have remarked that I seem unemotional, which I know is untrue, but a lot of it seems to be their alienation by what I consider to be logical behaviour.

I suspect this is just hypochondria, or something like it, but I guess it illustrates how subtle the idea of a spectrum can be.

View on HN

If you enjoyed this you might find the 'neurotypical syndrome site' (http://isnt.autistics.org/) another refreshing take on the relationship between autism and 'normality'.

I think it's fair to say the most important/relevant/defining trait is quite severe difficulties in social functioning, usually characterised by a lack of friends. This is also the one that I nearly always see left out by people who "think they might have it".

And importantly it's not because people with autism do not want friends. They are often desperately lonely.

Are there usable self-tests that have reasonable error rates?

Probably most relevant is the work of Simon Baron Cohen, a respected researcher into ASD. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Baron-Cohen

There's a test for "Empathy Quotient", and there are probably self test versions around. (I found a few using Google, but I didn't try them so I don't know if they're harvesting email addresses or need payment) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empathy_Quotient

He also developed an Empathizing Quotient / Sympathizing Quotient test, and there are probably self-test versions available. http://personality-testing.info/tests/EQSQ.php

See also this (heavily caveated) test http://psychcentral.com/quizzes/autism.htm

These tests are probably better than reading DSM / ICD diagnostic criteria, but still a proper diagnosis should be done by a proper doctor with some experience in the topic.

That does have a couple of problems. 1) It can be hard to find a doctor prepared to give you an assessment and diagnosis. 2) It leads some people to think there's an industry of doctors diagnosis bogus conditions in order to prescribe medication. (See for example how dismissive some people are of ADD / ADHD).

I scored a 44, I understand that it could mean nothing, but I have honestly been thinking about getting checked out for Autism for some time; especially after reading some of the recent HN stories about it and feeling a lot of the same things.

How would I go about being tested for this? What kind of doctor do I need to see?

In England: It's tricky. You see your gp and say, clearly and persistently, that you want an assessment to see if you have ASD.

Mental health teams are underfunded and over worked, and so if it's not causing you difficulties you might need to push a bit harder. So, if it is causing you difficulty highlight those.

If you have the money you can find a private doctor. I'm not sure of the process to find reliable doctors!

Here's what a UK charity says about diagnosis for children and also for adults: http://www.autism.org.uk/about-autism/all-about-diagnosis.as...

Anyone know about getting tested in the US?

I've heard that its recommended to try and be transferred to a neurologist that specializes in ASD cases. Psychologists may misinterpret behaviour and perception.

It varies a lot by city and state what the available resources are. google and ask around for local autism experts. There are often autism specialist centers of various kinds, for example at universities, and there are also psychologists and psychiatrists who specialize. It works a bit differently in every city.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com